Grain Producers of the Year
Grain SA
Promotional article
Always stay courageous when you farm
RUTH SCHULTZ, SA GRAAN/GRAIN CONTRIBUTOR
“I know farming is difficult, but the most
important thing is courage, courage, courage,
courage,” were the words of Maurice
Mthandeki Boki, after he was announced as the
Grain SA/Absa Developing Grain Producer of
the Year for 2013.
Maurice grew up in the mountainous area of
Matatiele. After working in Johannesburg, he
returned to his hometown and bought a trading
station which still exists.
In 1995 he bought the farm, Horncroft,
between Cedarville and Taylorville through
the Land Bank. It is here where he has since
been building his farming enterprise. His cattle
and maize is testimonial of a man who is truly
passionate about farming. “You have to have a
passion for what you are doing. Set goals for
yourself so that you know what you want to
achieve,” he said in a DVD presentation at the
gala dinner.
As Maurice expanded, he leased additional
land. He currently farms on just less than
1 000 hectares of which well over half is arable.
He believes in advancing his crop farming
through seed technology, focusing on good
performance in his area. Even in the dry season
he harvests over 5 tons per hectare that is
marketed for him by PSP in Kokstad.
“The achievement I obtained tonight is
because of God and not because of me. I still
have to pray harder, because standing here
presents another challenge; it means I have
to work even harder now,” he said during his
appreciation speech.
27
November 2013
At the back, from left: Louw Steytler (chairman: Grain SA),
Brienne van der Walt (group head: Absa AgriBusiness), Maurice
Boki, Jannie de Villiers (CEO: Grain SA) and Ian Househam (pro-
vincial coordinator: Grain SA Farmer Development Programme,
Eastern Cape). In front is Jane McPherson (programme manager:
Grain SA Farmer Development Programme) and Landi Kruger
(data administrator and economist: Grain SA Farmer Develop-
ment Programme).
Absa Bank payroll and payment solutions
– Francois Smit, Manager: AgriBusiness Operations and Marketing , Absa Retail and Business Banking
Absa offers a range of cashless payment solutions to our business
clients.
Corporate Prepaid Card
The Absa Corporate Prepaid Card is an Absa branded card that ena-
bles Absa Business Customers to load funds onto the card for use
by the cardholder.
Features
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• Is reloadable with values of up to R25 000 per month
• Only the Absa Business Customer that issued the card will be
able to load funds onto the card
• Can be used anywhere in South Africa by retailers accepting
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• Can withdraw cash at an ATM, Absa branch or POS devices at
supporting merchants. POS transactions and ATM withdraw-
als are limited to R2 000 per day. Cash withdrawals in an Absa
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• Can obtain the available balance from the Absa Business Cus-
tomer that issued the card or an ATM
• Valid for a minimum period of 36 months from date of issuance
• Can report a card lost/stolen to the Absa Business Customers
client that issued the card or the Absa Stop Card line 0800 11 11 55
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• If a card expires, the cardholder can request a new card from the
Absa Business Customer client
Transact Account
The Transact Account is an Absa card-based account and is available
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Features
• No minimum opening balance or minimal monthly balance is
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• Can withdraw money at an ATM, Absa branches or POS devices
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• Balance available from an Absa branch, ATM or POS terminal at
supporting merchants
• The cardholder can report a card lost/stolen to the Absa branch or
Absa Stop Card line and a replacement card can be requested by
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For more information, contact us at:
or 011 350 6854.
